Directories are not going anywhere!
With all the recent posts about ZEAL closing up shop (which I think is a stupid move for a good directory) and all the talk about the future of directories I have to include my thoughts about it. (mostly for all the people that have asked me this last week-no kidding about 30 different clients have asked me.)
ZEAL closing shop is really not that big of a deal. Here is why. Other then the fact it was a really good directory (that many complained about being hard to get into) there are many better directories out there. Take for example DMOZ and the Yahoo Directory. A link with one of these guys can be worth more then 50 links on other directories. Also a factor that Google takes into high consideration is that Yahoo directory is not a guranteed listing. You have to pay them $299 just for review and consideration. So if you get listed it carries alot of weight for that simple fact (atleast on Google).
Gaining popularity on the search engines directory submissions should only be ONE method you use. By no means can you expect to achieve all the rankings you want to simply by submitting to a directory. You should take into consideration if the directory will get you traffic or not. If it will not get you traffic you might as well just not waste your time. A directory that is not getting you any traffic is probably not very popular with Google so again its not really worth the effort or money.  On the other hand take a business directory like USCity.net who offers NO anchored text in its listing to keep its directory pure does get its users alot of traffic (but it will do nothing for your SERP). I have a site listed in this directory and about 10 percent of my traffic comes from this directory alone.
Things to consider:
- How long has the directory been in business.
- What is thier page rank?
- How long have they registered thier domain name for?
- Do they have any SERP? ON Any engines?
- Are you using them simply for an anchor text link?
- Do you think you will actually get traffic from the directory itself?
- What kind of traffic is the directory getting?
- What is their Alexa ranking?
- What kind of integrity does the directory have?
- Does the directory have Google Adsense all over it, or other ads?
These are a few things that I heavily take into consideration when submitting to directories. Alot of posts recently that I have been reading are talking about directories that have Google Adsense over them. You can’t blame these guys for wanting to make more money on thier website so I unlike some others out there do not have a problem with directories having Adsense all over them. BUT, what I do have a problem with is the directories that are tyring to include these ads right where the submit button is…trying to trick you into clicking…in my opinion this is a terms of service breaker as bad as telling people to click on the ads…I really think if you have the ads on the page where it does not get in the way of the directory and the listings and its clearly seperated then I have no problem with it whatsoever! With that said, let me give you a list of my top 10 (for now). These are directories that will get you traffic as well as help your search engine rankings:
- http://sbd.bcentral.com
- http://dir.yahoo.com
- http://www.dmoz.org
- http://www.abilogic.com
- http://www.greenstalk.com
- http://www.business.com
- http://www.uscity.net
- http://www.octopedia.com
- http://www.eplanit.biz
- http://www.gimpsy.com
I have many others on my list that I use for both reasons.  An internet directory can help you with rankings on MSN or Yahoo and some help you on Google. Some just get you traffic right from thier site. Bottom line before submitting to any directory or trying to build links, just ask yourself if it can get you traffic? So with all this said, I will continue to use directories and I personally don’t think they are going anywhere!
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[…] Alot of buzz has been going on about ZEAL closing shop and with that the questions come flooding in about directories. Often asked is, “Are directories going to be less relevant to submit to?” I think this is the begining for really good directory submissions. You have to take into consideration what the directory is going to do for you.read more | digg story […]